First detailed map of moon’s south pole

Recently, the Chandrayaan-3 mission of India provided its first-ever detailed geological map of the moon’s south pole.

Chandrayaan-3 Mission: It was the first mission to land in a high-latitude polar region, about 630 km from the moon’s south pole.
New geological map: The map was created using the Pragyan rover. It gave detailed information about the surface, subsurface, and its history.
Magma underneath the surface: Chandrayaan-3’s Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer revealed the presence of an underground magma and also the information about the theory of a shared origin of the Earth and Moon.
Environmental Concerns: Human activity on the moon, including lander and rover operations, may be disturbing the surface, contaminating lunar ice, and altering the thin lunar exosphere.

Scientists had previously suspected that the moon has an underground molten rock.
Missions like Apollo and Luna also made similar claims about the molten rock.
However, the Chandrayaan-3 confirmed that this ancient magma ocean covered the entire moon, offering strong evidence of the moon’s volcanic past.

Studies suggest that the Earth and Moon were formed from the same cosmic event.
Around 4.5 billion years ago, a Mars-sized object likely collided with Earth, ejecting debris that later solidified into the Moon.
Chandrayaan-3’s landing near the South Pole-Aitken Basin, one of the oldest impact craters in the solar system, provides a unique opportunity to study this early history.

Sustainable and Ethical Exploration – Implement global guidelines to minimise lunar surface disturbance, regulate resource extraction, and prevent contamination of lunar ice and regolith.
International Cooperation and Legal Framework – Strengthen space treaties like the Outer Space Treaty and Artemis Accords to ensure fair and responsible exploration, avoiding monopoly over lunar resources.
Scientific Preservation and Monitoring – Establish long-term monitoring systems to study human impact on the moon’s environment, ensuring that lunar exploration remains data-driven and sustainable.

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